Got an e-mail today from Northwest Airlines signed by a number of other airline presidents and CEOs urging me to visit a site called Stop Oil Speculation Now:

The oil price bubble is unfairly taxing American families and restricting our nation's economic potential. While everyone is aware that supply and demand constraints contribute to price increases, there's another force at work that, like gravity, is invisible yet powerful. This force is rampant speculation.

Every time you buy products such as food or gas, you are impacted by unregulated, secretive and often foreign commodities futures markets. Speculators in these markets are increasingly buying and selling commodities such as oil even though they have no intention of using the product. As unregulated speculators pocket billions of dollars at your expense, the price of commodities has increased out of proportion to marketplace demands.

Yes, those bastions of the free market who run our airlines are crying for the clumsy hand of government to step in and help them once again. One obvious question is how the UNITED STATES CONGRESS plans to "act" to do something about these "foreign" commodities futures markets. The arrogance and ignorance that leads these bozos to believe that global oil markets will bow to the whims of Congress is rather astounding.

Labels: Energy

Posted by Chad The Elder--Link